


Shades of Gold and Green

by Lawfuless



Category: Justice Society of America (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Other, Rating May Change, Sam and Alan are not a thing, Soulmate-Colourblind, Tags May Change, Warnings May Change, pairings may change - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-14
Updated: 2016-01-15
Packaged: 2018-04-29 12:42:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5128052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lawfuless/pseuds/Lawfuless
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>Doctor Fate entered the crowded room, and then stumbled back. Because suddenly he could see in colour. The world was so bright, it was almost nauseating. A hand on his shoulder steadied him, and- despite the shadows hiding his eyes, and the mask the other wore- he swore could see a pair of emerald orbs that bore into his own eyes. The other kept him steady, while the others looked on, a bit bewildered. Fate straighted himself, then looked away, his face a dark red- even if they couldn't see it. He mumbled a 'thank you', but couldn't help to wonder... Who in the room let him see colours? And could they see them as well?</em>
</p><p> </p><p>A Colourblind AU, in which everyone sees in shades until they see their soulmate, and then they can see in colour.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blinding Colour Brings New Sight

**Author's Note:**

> ((I own nothing. I just thought it was a pretty cute pairing idea and decided, since no one else had, that I'd try my hand at writing for it.))

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A life of adventure in black and white was always his intent. However, when Doctor Fate joins the JSA, he finds himself suddenly taking a leap into a world of danger. But then, at least villains with guns can be physically fought, unlike the turmoil of love.

The ad in the newspaper had said that they were looking for heroes to join the JLA, and assist them in taking care of the problems too big for the police to contain. So, with his Helm on his head and his mind set, Kent Nelson headed towards the building they had claimed was the meeting place.

The room was large, and there were already people present, from what he could see.

Doctor Fate entered the crowded room, and then stumbled back. Because suddenly he could see in colour. The world was so bright, it was almost nauseating.

A hand on his shoulder steadied him, and- despite the shadows hiding his eyes, and the mask the other wore- he swore could see a pair of emerald orbs that bore into his own eyes. The other kept him steady, while the others looked on, a bit bewildered.

Fate straighted himself, then looked away, his face a dark red- even if they couldn't see it. He mumbled a 'thank you', but couldn't help to wonder... Who in the room let him see colours? And could they see them as well?

They introduced themselves, apparently the one who had steadied him was a youthful blond man who called himself 'The Green Lantern'. He had a ring that gave him the power to create green constructs, fly, and do some vaguely magical things.

The others only vaguely stood out, the most memorable being 'The Flash', who was a somewhat older brunette. He talked a mile a minute, and because Kent was one of the few people in the room who could actually understand even half of what he was saying, had to play translator some of the time.

Still, his attention was halved, his focus on the Lantern, but also on whatever else was going on. He couldn't help but tune in to the man whenever he spoke. Something was soothing, almost hypnotic about the way he spoke. And he was charming.

Now, Kent didn't deem himself gay. In fact, he had no preference. He assumed he'd never meet his soul mate, though. That it was a silly joke. And yet, now he saw in colour, and someone in the room was his soul mate. Part of him longed for it to be the mysterious blond (if only because he had already helped him, within seconds of meeting). But at the same time, he had no idea.

So, he resigned himself to sitting through the meeting, focusing as much as he could on everyone else. He planned to leave when it was over, and forget about the whole colour thing, head back to the tower to relax with a cup of tea.

After the meeting, receiving his patrol area, schedule and communications device, Kent Nelson returned home, and returned to civilian clothing. He went to make himself tea, but found himself confused. He couldn't tell which tea was which anymore, and now that he looked at them, he could see that he was pretty much out of good tea. So he checked his pantries, and then scrubbed his face. Out of almost everything.

Grabbing his wallet and bike helm from by the exit of the tower, he headed down and found his bike where he'd left it, and pedaled his way to the store. Once there, he began shopping for essentials.

He reached for a box of tea when a hand came into view and brushed his, causing him to jump. He whirled around to see the stunned man before him.

Blond hair, emerald eyes, muscled. Dress shirt with rolled up sleeves, top two buttons open, in a shade of peridot, ocean blue jeans, and black shoes. Attractive. But he was staring so he quickly turned away, grabbing two boxes and offering one over.

"Oh, thanks. Sorry I startled you. I didn't mean to." The taller apologized. "You did kinda seem distracted, though, so I probably should have taken that into consideration."

Kent cleared his throat and waved him off. "It's fine, really. I'm just used to shopping later in the evening, so I forgot there were others here. And... Colours." he flushed a bit, looking over them. "Used to seeing shades of grey, and now it's all bright. And, erm... I've gotten lost in the bright colours." he admitted.

The other laughed, but then quickly stopped. "Sorry. I... Not laughing at you. It's just that I recently saw my special somebody too, and I'm a bit off as well. Not sure who it was, because I was in a group of people, but I have one. And that's exciting. I'm Alan, by the way! Scott. Nice to meet you..."

"Er, Kent. Kent Nelson. Nice to meet you Alan. Ah, unfortunately, I've met with a similar fate. Too many people, suddenly seeing bright colours... Not quite sure who it could have been." His cheeks remained warm. This was like trying to ask a girl out in elementary school. Except they both already had soulmates. That was how it was supposed to work, right?

"Pleasure's mine, Kent! Ah, well, it's a shame we don't know, but it's better than not knowing." he commented warmly, clasping the shorter's shoulder.

The Magi shuffled a bit, ducking his head. "Very true... Erm, I'd better get back to shopping. I'm kind of on call right now for work. But I'm certain I have time to at least finish shopping."

Alan nodded, stepping back a bit. "It was nice meeting you. I hope I see you around some time! Maybe we could grab a coffee, or something? Just chat, you know? I just recently moved in to town to be closer to work, so I know how you feel."

Shyly, he nodded. "That sounds wonderful. I'll see you around."

With a wave, they parted, and Kent finished shopping, unable to help the smile that broke out over his face. What were the odds of meeting two nice people, by accident, on the same day? Still a nice voice, but he swore it was familiar.

It would be later, when cooking food for himself, that he would realize the radio talk person who spoke between songs sounded familiar. Especially when he introduced himself as 'Alan Scott'. "Huh! Small world." he murmured to the plate of spaghetti, twirling his fork.

In the evening, he was called by the JSA to assist in a magic issue. Someone summoned a greater demon, and now it was terrorizing Gotham. He headed over, greeted by Green Lantern and The Flash, who made it there the quickest.

"Oh, lovely." he hissed, glaring at the beast. "Always loved dealing with sin." he sighed.

Lantern raised a prim brow. "What do you mean?" He asked, genuinely curious. If Kent could properly express himself, he would have been more eager to explain. But Fate had no patience and no time for a crush.

"I mean that's rage, and we had better stop him before he summons the other sins." he stated calmly, folding arms over his chest as he floated.

"Woah there. Rage? Summon? Other sins?" Flash asked, having slowed himself down but busied himself by bouncing on his heels.

"The sins were incarnated as demons. Someone brought them from Hell into our world. This one is Rage. And they will summon the other sins if we don't stop them." he explained, gesturing at the creature that was ripping apart the streets, tearing cars in half, and paused only to scream at the heavens.

"....Okay. So, what do you suggest we do?" The speedster questioned, looking ready to go run circles around the demon.

The magi sighed, rubbing at the Helm. "We need to calm it down. And stay calm while doing so. It feeds off Rage, so we can't get angry, or it will use us as the anchor to stay on Earth."

The Lantern frowned. "Easier said than done?"

"Obviously."

The three made their way over. Kent quickly threw a barrier around the area to stop any summoning spells and to prevent Rage from leaving the location, while Lantern went to keep him calm. Flash ran off to find out where the others were.

As Green Lantern spoke to the creature, challenging it to a game of wits, he came to the realization his voice was familiar. Very much so. Unfortunately with his concentration focused on keeping the barrier high, whatever vocal hints were lost to him, and it was mostly just background noise.

By the time the others arrived, the place was finishing being cleaned up by the three- As The Flash had returned once he had checked up on the others- so it seemed as though nothing happened. Except for a few changes here and there like cars being upgraded and the keys having to be exchanged as well as license plates and the like. Doctor Fate was taking care of that.

"I see you all handled it quite well." Doctor Mid-Nite noted, looking over the scene.

The tallest of the group gestured to where Fate was doing his own thing. "You can thank the good Doctor over there. He figured out what it was, kept it in one place, and told us how we could defeat it." he admitted.

The blond returned and waved dismissively. "Any Magi worth their snuff should know about demons and their levels. And you were the one who talked it out of getting angry." he replied. "And Flash went to get you, and helped fix the place up."

Soon after, they went their separate ways.

Kent stared at the large window, staring breathlessly at the moon's rise. He watched the colours until he fell asleep, and then he woke up to see the sunrise with just as much awe.

He had thought his life would be lonely, empty, and grey.

He was glad to be wrong.


	2. Illuminating Things That Delight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A date for his double life, and trouble on patrol, Kent finds himself in a whole new world of problems... At least his cupboard isn't one.

Nervously tugging at his tie, Kent craned his neck and shifted his head from side to side, inspecting his tie. The full Windsor was a difficult knot to tie and now he wasn't even sure if he should go that fancy. He sighed, deciding to leave it in place. Even if he was over dressed, he felt as though Alan wouldn't mind.

By the time he arrived, he was two minutes late. Traffic was bad. He hadn't been able to move through the pedestrian crossings as quickly as he'd have liked and the lights were slow, but at least it meant that if the other man wasn't going to show, he could have known a bit earlier. And there was Alan, in an emerald green button-up. Short sleeves, black pants, and a belt with gold buckle. Dazzling colours as usual.

He made his way over, raising his hand a bit shyly in greeting. It was strange to meet someone in such a setting. Alan rose to meet him when he was close enough, pulling him into a half hug that startled him a bit. They sat down, and he averted his gaze, looking to the pale blue tie around his throat to tug at it, a long-sleeved yellow dress shirt and a pair of navy dress pants finished his look. The other was taking his appearance in when he glanced up and then offered a crooked smile.

"I hope you didn't dress up for me. Really, it's bad enough I couldn't come pick you up or anything, but you shouldn't have." Alan told him, to which Kent shrugged, a bit self-conscious now.

A slight hum as he thought where to start, he began with a "Well, I don't really have many occasions to dress up, so I don't see why I shouldn't..." as input, then nodded over, finally meeting his gaze. "But you look just as dressed up- and nice as well- so... What shall we have, dear pot?" With that, he managed to quirk an odd smile, which drew out a laugh.

"I suppose, dear kettle, that we should order some tea and or coffee and perhaps a light snack while we discuss other such topics," replied the other as he steepled his hands. Taking that as a sign, Kent looked to the counter where a lady waited and raised his hand to receive a smile and a nod.

The waiter came along, a bored looking Korean fellow with black hair wearing sunglasses inside for whatever reason. He asked for their order and one of Scott's eyebrows shifted upwards slightly, provoking the magi to clear his throat. "Ah, Peppermint tea, if you have any? Otherwise Earl grey."

Taking the waiter's faint nod as sign that they indeed had the menthol beverage, Alan smiled. "Two please, if that isn't an issue?" he queried and got a slight shake of the head. Not an issue.

They looked back to each other as the server headed to the back to get their drinks in order, Nelson rubbed the back of his neck. "I, er, rather liked your radio show last night. It's rare that I should focus on anything more than the food I'm making whilst cooking, but you sir have a gift at making me almost burn things."

"Really now?" This garnered a surprised laugh. "Who'd have thought! Of all radio stations, you stumbled across mine. ...Glad to know someone likes my ramblings." he beamed, eyes lighting up. It seemed he was passionate about his job, even if he seemed a bit dismissive about his words.

"One should not sell themselves short, Alan. You were as wonderful as no doubt you always are. I'm just glad I got to know more about you." Kent assured him, then rubbed at the corner of his mouth. "I think it's funny. We've only just met and I prefer you to quite a few people I've known since I moved here." This tugged at something in the back of his mind, but he dismissed it. Probably just recalling the move into the tower again.

The green-eyed male shrugged in retort. "I'm not. Just saying I tend to ramble. And you shouldn't just judge a book by it's cover, Kent." he stuck his tongue out, before the pink muscle retreated to wet his lips and allow him to continue. "I'm glad you're interested, really. But you fascinate me more than myself, seriously." He looked Kent over again, then rested his cheek against his palm. "I mean, I've never seen or heard about you, we randomly meet and have similar interests in beverages, we both meet our mysterious soulmates on the same day.... And all I have is a name and a vague idea. Honestly, who are you?"

The conversation went on hold as the teas were set down along with packets of sugar and tiny containers of milk. A spoon each, both set to making their tea. A slight chuckle came from Scott. "Like your tea sweet?" he asked as the shorter added a fifth packet.

"I do indeed." he replied, lifting his chin. Then he stirred the liquid to merge the parts, debating his next phrases. "...I have studied ancient artifacts and have my own collection... I run a book, herbal remedies and somewhat occultish shop. I am studying to become a doctor. I like parlour tricks, and wanted to become a stage magician growing up... And because of a mess up on my behalf, my passport says I am only about twelve years old." he finally offered up.

Alan leaned back. "Well, don't go telling me your life story now! You might still keep me interested with more mystery." he joked, then quirked a brow. "Magic, huh? But twelve might be a bit too young for my tastes."

Kent rolled his eyes, flushing. "I'm at least twenty, Alan.... But yes, magic. It always fascinates me." The other replied, then turned to the window. "And yet... Little more could be as enchanting as the world in colour..." he whispered.

"The view is quite nice." Agreed Alan, but Kent found him to be the object of attention, which caused a sudden rosiness in his cheeks. He looked to his cup of tea, taking a large sip, shuddering at the burn. "...But I think I'm rather biased." The radio host admitted. Then he sombered. "I feel like there's something about you. Call me a fool, but even though I know about the whole soulmate thing, I couldn't care less."

Looking up, eyes wide, the magi inhaled quickly. "I... Alan..." he trailed off, uncertainty marring his words, his expression. He shook his head, looking away. "We can't. It wouldn't be fair to them. If we didn't know, or didn't want to know, it would be different. But this..."

A warm hand covered his, and he looked over. A faint smile was on the other's face, and Scott had understanding in his gaze. "It changes nothing. I respect that about you. No. I was going to say that I couldn't care less about the whole soulmate thing, but I know you feel differently. And I wanted to suggest we be friends until or unless we find our soulmates. If we never do, maybe we could try for more. But I honestly care about you. I'd like to have you in my life. Even if just as a friend." Assured the other blond.

Kent offered a weak smile in return, a bit relieved Alan wasn't pushing the issue. In fact, he was rather interested in the continuation of his friendship. The other meant such a big deal to him. He didn't understand it either, the sheer amount he cared for Alan. He would have to do some research about the subject when he had some free time.

Drinking some more tea, their conversations moved onto other topics, dabbling into 'Favorite colour, movie, song, game' category as well as philosophical. Alan suggested one day having him on the show. Especially considering the whole 'witch from Salem' bit, which Kent made a face at, but laughed anyways.

"Well, this has been a lovely lunch. Perhaps we shall meet again. I'll give you my business card, because it's got my contact information. And that way, we don't have to find each other in the grocery store anymore." He laughed, digging out a card from his pocket.

"That sounds absolutely lovely, Alan. I will keep that in mind." he accepted the card with a bit wider of a smile, still trying out the expression. Such a strange thing... He hadn't really smiled properly in years. Not since he was a kid. "I'll send you an e-mail when I get home with my contact information. Then you can call, or we can talk over messages. Up to you."

Pulled into a large hug, the other laughed. "So like you to try and make life easier on me. You're too kind." He kissed Kent's cheek, grinning at the flush. "See you soon, Kent." He patted his back, then headed out, probably heading to work. Unlike him, Kent had to walk home. Or, at least, to the nearest alley and then have Nabu open a portal to the tower. Having patrol today, he planned to get ready and go first thing.

Once at home, he greeted the God in the helm, pausing only at the snort. "Oh, lay off it Nabu. You must have had a friend before." He accused, continuing into the kitchen. The helm floated after him, hand folded over the cloak the spirit wore. Enough mana to do something like this, not enough to actually do his job.

" _Kent, you've yet to be happier. Which is a good sign. It means you are doing well. However, do be careful. I know how this kind of thing works out. Mortals and Magi do not mesh well. Love is hard._ " He warned, floating past to drape himself on a chair, the helm resting on the table while the rest more or less vanished to reappear when worn.

Kent rubbed the back of his neck as he looked through the cupboard for what to make for a proper lunch. "Ah, we're just friends, Nabu." He selected a can of chicken noodle soup, then put a pot on the stove, setting it up to boil. "Really. That's it. We both have a soulmate. ...Nothing more." Added for good measure, he turned to the salt and pepper to sprinkle it in.

Fate sighed. " _You will say this now, but I assure you, there will come a time when you have to make a difficult decision."_ Kent took the words to heart, placing his hands on the counter, head bowing. _"But for now, focus on eating. We will be heading out soon, and hopefully we'll have something to distract us._ "

"Oh, don't pretend you hate Mario Kart. You're just upset you're not very good at it." he shot back before standing and turning off the stove, heading over to shoot off the e-mail before returning to the cooled food to eat. Once done, he slipped on the helm to head out, searching for something to do.

Eventually, he heard a cry for help. He headed over, and found he wasn't the only hero on the scene. The caped crusader he'd met yesterday had showed up as well to help with the issue. A burning building. "Alright, I'll get the survivors, can you take care of the blaze?" Green Lantern asked, to which Doctor Fate nodded.

Entering together, the two split off, one battling the flames with summoned water, the other rescuing people with the green glow. Fate always sent people out, or to him, with the exception of when the roof tried to collapse, and he had to shield the group he had found. Once the flames were out and everyone was in safe hands, the heroes headed off, meeting in the sky over Gotham.

"Thanks for that," Lantern told him, smiling slightly. "I wasn't sure I would be able to take care of it alone... Hey, do you want to patrol together? I was just going to do a watch today, but if you're here, we can take care of a lot more." he offered. Kent contemplated with Nabu, who suggested he might as well. So he vocalized his agreement and went with the other.

They eventually were stopped at a parade, where they were offered a spot on a bakery's float. The mask-wearing man laughed and smiled at the people, giving out whatever was offered for him to give. Nelson gave out things as well, but floated them out to specific people and kids. Without much of an expression, he didn't seem too happy, so he couldn't do much more than wave from time to time and pass out treats.

After, they shook hands with the main baker and then headed off to do more before they eventually retired for the night.

Kent checked his e-mail, smiling at the message, sending a brief one back with a smiley face. He marked down the Saturday for their date as Sunday was a mutually bad day. Both had a meeting. And since his shop opened Monday to Thursday, he had some relaxing time.

He would relish the time to relax... And maybe show Nabu how to play Smash.


End file.
